Fire Chief Jim Parrish said the fire at Lauren Manufacturing on Tuesday spread horizontally underneath the rubber roofing over a metal deck, and had to be extinguished from underneath.

The fire, reported at 2:43 p.m., was declared under control by 3:44 p.m. No one was hurt and about 90 to 100 employees were evacuated while firefighters from New Philadelphia and Dover fought the blaze.

During the height of the fire, flames could be seen on the rooftop over the plant’s extrusion area, as thick black smoke billowed skyward.

Lisa Huntsman, president of Lauren Manufacturing, said workers from an outside area firm were patching a section of the roof “and as they were heating it, apparently it sparked and it got out of control.”

Huntsman said the plant’s roof had a major water leak that was discovered with the onset of Monday’s rain, and repairs were being made Tuesday. She said the fire area was over one of the company’s main extrusion areas — where the larger rubber products are produced.

Nanette McFadden, the company’s human resources manager, said the first shift (which was due to end at 4 p.m.) was canceled, and there was no second shift Tuesday because of the fire.

Huntsman estimated that the plant would be in operation by midnight, when the third shift was scheduled to begin.

Parrish said the metal deck roof underneath the rubber roof was pulled to get to the fire, and there was a lot of overhaul work required to get ahead of the fire. He noted that a call for additional firefighters was sent out “strictly for manpower, because it’s a manpower-intensive operation: there’s a lot of hand work to do.”

The third alarm brought in firefighters and equipment from Uhrichsville, York Township, Sugarcreek and Bolivar fire departments, as well as personnel from Smith and Swiss Valley ambulance services.

Firefighters and equipment from Mineral City, Baltic and Strasburg were dispatched by the county’s 911 emergency system to cover other area fire stations, which were vacated during the fire.

No estimate of damages was available Tuesday.

Lauren Manufacturing, at 2228 Reiser Ave. SE, is a full-service provider of standard and custom extruded and molded sealing solutions.